High voltage contest in Goshamahal constituency

Known for its famous markets including Begum Bazar, Sultan Bazar and Jambagh besides Dhoolpet, a hub for Ganesh idols, kites and manja making, Goshamahal Assembly constituency in the old city is one of prominent segments that is known for a high voltage contest.

Having won the seat twice in 2014 and 2018, the BJP fielded its sitting legislator T Raja Singh again from Goshamahal segment by revoking his suspension from the party. Singh was suspended from the party in August last year for making provocative statements against a particular religion triggering a huge protest. Subsequently, he was arrested in the hate speech case and the Preventive Detention (PD) Act was invoked against him, sending him to jail for over two-months.

The BRS (then TRS), a runner-up in 2018 elections in this segment, has nominated Nanda Kishore Vyas, to take on Raja Singh. Congress party too fielded its candidate Mogili Sunitha from this segment. In what could be perceived as erosion of support, Raja Singh though triumphed in 2018 elections too, his winning margin had come down compared to 2014.

In his first contest in 2014, Raja Singh secured a winning margin of



46,793 votes against Congress party’s nominee M Mukesh Goud. However, in 2018, the victory margin slumped by 17,734 votes with 61,854 votes, while runner up from BRS (then TRS) party Prem Singh Rathore polling 44,120 votes. Following the delimitation exercise, Goshmahal constituency was carved out from Maharaj Gunj in 2008. The constituency is home to many families that have come to Hyderabad and settled from other parts of the country, particularly from the northern and western parts.

Though Goshamahal’s composition comprise people from different communities, Lodha community people form a major chunk. Some of the prominent landmarks in the segment include the bustling city’s commercial heart of the Begumbazar, Osmania General Hospital, Chudi Bazar, Jambagh, Goshamahal Baradari, Police stadium and Traffic Police Training Institute.

For the ensuing elections, this constituency has 2,66,909 electors including 1,39,526 men and 1,27,353 women. The third gender community has 30 votes in this segment. As per the latest enrollment, the number of voters increased by 33,748 in this assembly segment. During the last elections in 2018, the number of electors stood at 2,33,161.